


Night Vale Pride

by Nary



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Celebrations, Cultural Differences, Dating, Developing Relationship, M/M, Miscommunication, Parades, Pride, Rituals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-25
Updated: 2013-07-25
Packaged: 2017-12-21 06:47:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/897130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nary/pseuds/Nary
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Carlos didn't know why he was surprised, but nevertheless he was.  "Night Vale has a Pride parade?"  He'd been there over a year and hadn't noticed it taking place, but then, there were still a lot of things he didn't know about the town.  A <i>lot.</i></p>
            </blockquote>





	Night Vale Pride

"Would you, um, like to celebrate Pride with me?" Cecil asked during their third date.

Carlos didn't know why he was surprised, but nevertheless he was. "Night Vale has a Pride parade?" He'd been there over a year and hadn't noticed it taking place, but then, there were still a lot of things he didn't know about the town. A _lot_.

"Of course," Cecil said earnestly. "It was established by the Founders, and everyone is required to experience it at least once before they can be allowed to die. Or they can hang the traditional discarded snake-skin around their neck so that the celebrants might mercifully pass them by. But really it's much more fun if you just go along with it," he added with a smile. "And ultimately less painful."

Carlos eyed him dubiously. "So, it's mandatory Pride?" 

"An officially-sanctioned casting-off of embarrassment," Cecil agreed. "A ritual De-Shaming. Shame is unhealthy, and it attracts buzzards. Or is that dead bodies?"

Carlos had been in Night Vale long enough to harbor a moment of doubt as to whether Cecil meant that dead bodies attracted buzzards, or shame attracted dead bodies. "I'm not ashamed of you, or anything else," he protested. 

"You think that," said Cecil grimly. "But shame is sneaky. It lurks in the unseen corners of your being, accumulating like tiny tumors unless it can be vigorously, even violently expunged. Preferably with glitter and acres of glistening flesh."

Carlos nodded, bemused. "Of course, if it's expected that everyone attend, I'd be glad to go with you." 

"Oh, you don't really have to _go_ anywhere," explained Cecil. "Pride comes to you. When you least expect it. Usually around dusk, but it could be anytime. Once Pride struck while I was showering, that was sooo awkward. But I just had to embrace it."

Carlos had, as he often did, the suspicion that he and Cecil were talking about entirely different things. "But it _is_ a parade, right?"

"Oh yes. An elaborate, communal charade of unwholesome joy, mingled with a release of inhibitions and topped off with a mostly-nonlethal dose of memory-obliterating fumes. Also there are floats, I think."

Okay, that did sound sort of like other Prides he'd been to. "The memory-obliterating fumes must not work too well, if you remember that," he tried to joke, but Cecil just looked at him blankly. Carlos sighed and took his hand. "If we don't know when Pride will, uh, strike, how can we plan to attend it together?"

"Well, we can summon Pride," Cecil explained. "Just as there are traditional means to ward it off, there are also tokens one can employ to encourage it to manifest."

After the snake-skin, Carlos was a little afraid to ask what those might be. But he was a scientist, so he did it anyway, and only grimaced a little when Cecil explained how the gourds were used. 

"... until we are finally splattered with its shimmering, viscous majesty, leaving us both gasping and emotionally eviscerated, clinging to one another like orphaned baby lemurs, and extremely, extremely Proud," Cecil concluded. "It might be more of a fourth or fifth date sort of thing," he added, blushing adorably.

"Sounds... festive," Carlos said gamely, squeezing Cecil's hand and smiling to show him he hadn't scared him off. "There's no one else I'd rather be ritually De-Shamed with than you."

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Tumblr at [naryrising](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/naryrising) if you want to ask questions, make requests, or chat!


End file.
